


Shared Strength

by DraconicEngineer



Series: Bonded by Fate [4]
Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Azurrin Week 2016, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, Cross-Posted on Tumblr, F/M, Family, Fire Emblem Fates: Revelation, Friendship, Post-Fire Emblem Fates: Revelation, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-05
Updated: 2016-08-05
Packaged: 2018-07-29 10:58:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,277
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7681741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DraconicEngineer/pseuds/DraconicEngineer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One morning, Corrin falling ill has Azura concerned about his health. In typical Corrin fashion, he proceeds to place his kingdom before himself and wants to treat this day like any other. After some quick thinking, a compromise is struck and Corrin and Azura trade places.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shared Strength

**Author's Note:**

> Day 4 of 7 and more slow burn is here to keep the fire burning. I’ll save the punches to the gut for later. This role reversal is a little different than the norm, but I hope it works. Probably the hardest prompt for me so far.
> 
> Again, thank you for your support on all my work. As always, each and every review is appreciated be it praise or constructive criticism. Be sure to check out the official tumblr site at azurrinweek.tumblr.com for more cool stuff like this.

**_Day 4: Role Reversal_ **

**_Shared Strength_ **

Waking up with a headache was not on Corrin’s to-do list for the day. Having a sore throat and a cold sweat to go along with that headache didn’t help either. He had managed to get through most of the early phases morning just fine, but now, as he ate breakfast, he felt his stomach beginning to turn against him. 

“Corrin, are you sure you’re ok?” Azura asked him, concern etched on her face. Despite his reassurances from earlier, she was still uneasy about all the little contradictory signals he had shown. From the small shivers she felt when touching his arm to the way his hand shot forward to grab to his head at random, everything her husband did was different from she knew to be normal. She knew that he was probably ill and that he didn’t want to admit it. 

“Don’t worry dear” he reassured her before hesitatingly taking the last bite out of his toast. “I’m…fine. I can make it through today.” The weak thumbs up afterwards didn’t make his case any more convincing.

“Just because you can doesn’t mean you should. Everything you’ve done this morning attests to that fact. Let me check your temperature.”

Corrin opened his mouth to protest, but thought better of it when the songstress scooted her chair closer to him. Instead, he turned to face her and cleared away some of the white strands of his messy hair that fell over his forehead. Azura gently placed her hand on the half-dragon’s head and her suspicions were confirmed instantly.

“So…… I’m good to go right?” Corrin asked, holding onto the faint hope that she wouldn’t detect any ailments.

“Far from it. You’re burning up and you should rest instead of stressing yourself out all day in court.”

“Azura, you know that I can’t take a rest. Valla is still rebuilding and I need to be at the helm to make sure nothing goes wrong.”

“Corrin, I know you place your duty above all else, but please, you need to rest. The country won’t break down in a day and I know everyone would rather see you healthy than sick, myself included.”

The king looked to his wife, worry in his expression. “Azura, you know me well enough to know that I can’t rest when there’s work to do. Trust me when I say I can function like this.” 

Azura knew that her husband wasn’t wrong. Corrin was a hard worker by nature and he would put everything personal aside for the sake of others, even if it meant working through sickness or pain. She had seen him do it before during the war as they traveled to Notre Sagesse. It was then that she learned Corrin was easily made seasick. Yet somehow, he still managed to stand up and fight, leading his small force to victory against Camilla and the forces of Nohr. The half-dragon was not a man who would sit on the sidelines. The songstress rested a hand on her husband’s shoulder as she crafted a plan that would serve as a win-win for the both of them. The idea didn’t take long for her flesh out and in her eyes, it would be a good compromise. Once it was fully formed, she replied to Corrin.

“I do trust you Corrin. I trust you with all of my heart. But I love you too much to ignore your health. If you’re willing to hear me out, I have an idea that I think would allow us to compromise on the situation,” the songstress explained, looking into the half-dragon’s eyes.

“Go ahead,” Corrin said between a fit of coughs, “I’m always willing to hear you out.”

Azura nodded and began to explain the plan. “I think we should switch roles for the day. I’ll handle the court sessions that you usually attend to while you can work on the analysis of current policies behind the scenes and propose any changes like I normally would.”

Corrin drummed his fingers on the table as he mulled over her words. Switching roles for the day wasn’t a bad idea and in many respects was the perfect compromise. He would be able to help Valla move forward and rest at the same time and Azura would command the same, if not more, respect and power in court that he did. He did have one more concern though, and he wasn’t about to let it go unvoiced.

“Are you sure you’re up to handling that many people though? I know you don’t like large crowds unless you’re performing in front of them.”

The songstress simply smiled. “I must admit I’ll probably be a little uncomfortable, but I don’t mind making sacrifices for the one I love.” Corrin coughed again and the corners of his mouth curled upward. “Neither do I. Let’s go with your idea then. I’m willing to be in the background if it means that the one I love won’t be as worried.”

“Very well. Let’s get to work then shall we?” Azura asked as she stood up and offered her hand to the Vallite king.

“Let’s,” came the simple response as Corrin rose and took her hand. The Vallite Queen could feel his hand shiver periodically and gently rubbed it in a reassuring response. As they left the table, the servants rushed in behind them to clear their dishes and start their cleaning of the dining room. The din they caused was soon left behind as the pair entered the castle’s main hallway. 

After a short six minute walk, they arrived in front of two old stone doors that were covered in intricate carvings of the First Dragons. These doors served as the entrance to the newly rebuilt Vallite throne room and another smaller, oaken door stood to their right. This door served as the entrance to Azura’s private office. Corrin quickly kissed Azura on the forehead as their hands separated and they made their way to their respective doors. The king carefully opened the wooden door and looked at the songstress, who had closed her eyes and looked focused.

“Azura,” he called out to her, “You’re going to do great. Thanks for looking out for me.” Several seconds passed with no response and Corrin began to wonder if his words had fallen on deaf ears. Regardless, he didn’t want to distract her and made the decision to step away from the doorframe and into her office. However, the king’s supportive nature couldn’t be contained, and seconds later, his head peeked out of the doorframe and focused on his wife.

Azura placed both of her hands on the stone doors and continued to focus. The doors were cold as ice and simply keeping her hands in place sent shivers down her spine. She had never been in front of a royal court that welcomed her as a friend, but hopefully this time would be different. These were her people after all. 

“ _This isn’t Nohr. This isn’t Hoshido. There will be so many people with their eyes on me and as much as I’d like to be out of the public eye, I must remember I’m doing this for Corrin and that I will have far more friends than foes_ ,” she thought to herself as she took several deep breaths. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale.

With her mind steeled for the potential upcoming challenge, she pushed the doors open and confidently strode into the throne room to applause from all around. As she entered, she was almost certain she heard Corrin echo “That’s right! You know you’re fabulous!” from behind and concealed a faint blush. Illness could subdue many traits of her husband, but his over-the-top displays of affection certainly weren’t dampened one bit. Once, she was out of sight, Corrin ducked his head back inside the office and got to work.

“Ladies and gentlemen assembled here today in this Vallite Court, join me in welcoming K---Queen Azura!” Silas declared to the nobles assembled for the day’s politics. The Nohrian knight had been close to Corrin throughout the war and there was no questioning the friendship he held with the king. Naturally, Corrin took Silas as his retainer when the war ended and the knight filled in wonderfully as his right hand man. He faithfully opened every session of Corrin’s court and stood beside his liege whenever asked, oftentimes helping make important military decisions. Through his service to the king, he had grown fairly close to the queen and immediately struck up a conversation once Azura seated herself on the throne.

“Hello Lady Azura. I certainly didn’t think I’d find you here today. What’s up with Corrin?”

“He’s ill right now, so I’m filling in for him for today” was the reply.

“You got him to actually take a day off and rest?” he asked, incredulous.

“Not exactly. We simply traded places for today. That way he can still contribute while resting himself.”

Silas whistled in admiration. “Lady Azura, that’s extremely impressive. Don’t tell him I said this, but sometimes Corrin really is determined to a fault, so I’m glad you’ve gotten him to take a step back today.”

That prompted a chuckle from the songstress. “Trust me, I know that best of anybody here. You and I both want only the best for him.”

“I take it he’s placing his faith in your judgement today?”

“I don’t think Corrin would have it any other way.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised one bit. Just remember, should you need my advice on anything, I’m right here.”

“Of course. Thank you Silas.”

“Not a problem,” the Nohrian answered before turning to face the assembled nobles and addressing them. “Now that the Queen has arrived and is ready to respond to your questions and concerns, let us begin!”

Hours upon hours passed before Silas brought the session to an end. In that time, Azura had heard almost every imaginable concern, from agriculture to infrastructure and responded to everything addressed to her with grace and poise based on a combination of her judgment and Corrin’s vision for the reemerging nation. Unlike her previous experiences in the Nohrian and Hoshidan courts, the Vallite court had made her feel respected and welcomed. Nobody challenged her authority and everyone listened to her words. When some arguments broke out between nobles, she served wonderfully as the voice of peace and promised compromise whenever possible. All in all, many were impressed by her first solo session and murmurs of the highest praise ran through the nobility as they were dismissed. What they didn’t know was that their queen was nearly mentally drained at the session’s end.

Azura wasted no time in exiting the throne room and immediately headed to her office to check on Corrin. After she opened the door, she was greeted with the sight of the half-dragon eating chicken noodle soup. Corrin waved and slurped up a noodle that hung from his lips, quickly cleaning his face with a napkin afterwards.

“Where’d you get that?” the songstress inquired.

“The nurses at the infirmary came by when they saw that you were running the show today. They gave me this bowl of soup and some tonic that I took earlier. Thanks to the tonic, my fever is barely there anymore and most of my symptoms have vanished for now.” Corrin quickly gulped down another spoonful of soup before scribbling something onto a piece of paper and sliding it to the side. 

“So, how was it?” he asked as follow-up. “Was everything ok?”

“It was just fine. Everything went smoothly for the most part and Silas did a good job helping me when I needed. I felt very well received and greatly respected, so you won’t need to chew anyone out.”

Corrin laughed before descending into another fit of coughs. After catching his breath he said “I didn’t think anyone wouldn’t like you anyway. You’re their queen, an actual Vallite who listens to and loves her people without fail. To be honest, I wouldn’t be surprised if they received you better than me.”

“Don’t be silly Corrin, you’re the likable face they’re used to.”

“Well, maybe they’ll fall in love with you just as quickly as I did.”

“Only if I can learn how you tolerate that bombardment of questions every day.”

“Yeah, I know that feeling. You get used to the mental strain over time, but you can always count on court to make you tired,” Corrin stated as he rose from his chair with a yawn and stretched out. 

“Looks like I’m not the only tired one,” his wife remarked.

“I was never a fan of paperwork. Add in the fact that I’m not feeling too hot and there’s the explanation for my exhaustion,” he returned, walking until he stood beside her.

“Well since we’re both a bit tired, how about we rest together for a bit on the couch?”

“I won’t object to that,” the half dragon answered as he looked at the couch in question. It was in the office for guests to make themselves feel comfortable, but right now the pale red cushions looked perfect for a quick respite.

Both king and queen sat down on the couch and nestled up close to each other. Azura’s head dropped onto Corrin’s shoulder and Corrin leaned his head on hers. The two of them sat in silence, eyes closed, enjoying the moment. Though the day had thrown new, different challenges at them both, the couple’s shared strength and solidarity would keep them going. It didn’t matter who played what role for in the end, what they achieved, they achieved together.


End file.
